An Alphabet of Stories
by swirlsandsparkles
Summary: A mixture of one-shots— some dark, some sweet, some deep… all sorts of Percy Jackson fics from A to Z!
1. A is for Archery

_Hi guys :) So just to start you off, this is the first fanfic I ever published online- and it turned out to be a collection of one-shots! I've written a few fics before, but I was feeling confident about sharing my work as I write- so here I go! :D Please read, review and ENJOY :_

 **A is for Archery**

 _ **Summary** : An Apollo kid gives a fellow Hades girl archery lessons…_

He watched her as she gripped the bow, seeing the determined look in her eyes. She pulled the drawstring a little, but she wasn't holding the bow properly. From the way she was aiming, the arrow would go anywhere but the target.

She did have unusual talent, he noted. Her arms had some power, so the bowstring was taunt, and her weight is unusually well balanced for a beginner.

"Diana," he said quietly so she didn't get startled and shoot the arrow into some bush.

Diana turned around and let the bowstring relax. Her eyes were piercing, but their color was indefinable. The outside was hazel, while the inside was a light green. These colors did not make her eyes look friendly though. She was a mystery, that he knew for sure.

"Hello, Kyle," she said, her eyebrows scrunching a little bit.

He cleared his throat and stepped forward. "I saw you holding that bow and I thought I could give you a few pointers."

Diana's expression relaxed a little bit and she shrugged her shoulders. "I suppose it wouldn't hurt. Thank you."

He stepped forward and pointed towards the bow. "Show me how you'd shoot it."

Diana lifted the bow up and pointed it towards the target, ready to draw the arrow. He stopped her from doing so and repositioned her grip on the bow. "See, you have to hold it higher up to get a better grip on the bow. Then you pull here… hold the string like this…"

He put his hands on her hips and gently turned them so she was facing the target correctly and pointed. "See, this target is close enough that you only have to shoot up a little bit. Give it a try." Diana had a determined look in those oddly beautiful eyes of hers.

She pull the string up to her chin, paused for a moment and let the arrow fly. He watched in amazement as the arrow sailed towards the target and stuck at the very side with a dull sound. "Wow!" he breathed. "Diana, you're a natural!"

Diana smiled a little and her cheeks turned slightly pink. "Here," he said, hurriedly thrusting a quiver filled with twenty arrows in her hand. "Put this on your back and see how quickly you can shoot all of these without rushing."

Diana looked back at the target, and after a minute or so, nineteen arrows were stuck in the target. Most were somewhere in the outside rings, but a few had come surprisingly close to the centre.

"What do you think?" she asked Kyle, who was staring at her with his mouth slightly open.

Kyle blinked. "Your godly parent is Hades, right?" he asked Diana, who nodded.

Kyle had an odd feeling in his stomach. Children of Hades were not known to be particularly skilled with a bow and arrow. Diana pulled the last arrow out of her quiver.

Kyle watched her pull the drawstring tight like a professional, she let the arrow fly— and it sailed directly towards the target and into the black centre. Bulls-eye. Kyle stared open-mouthed. "How on earth—"

At that moment, he realised she was shimmering in a silver light. "Oh my god," Kyle gasped. Diana wrinkled her brow as well until she looked at her arms and those grey-green eyes of hers widened.

"What does this mean?" she whispered. Both Diana and Kyle's eyes widened as they understood that this meant only one thing.

"Lady Artemis' blessing," Diana said breathlessly. Kyle looked worried.

Before he could stop himself he asked Diana, "Does this mean you have to join the Hunters of Artemis?"

Diana smiled the first real smile he had seen from her. Her eyes shone as she leaned over and pecked his cheek. "Not necessarily."


	2. B is for Benjamin

**B is for Benjamin**

 _When Annabeth takes the pregnancy test, she does not really expect to be pregnant. Yes, her period was late, but it was more of a reassurance that she could continue to live her life normally._

So when Annabeth sets it on the table in the bathroom and realises it is raining while the clothes are drying outside, she forgets about the pregnancy test and hurries to get the clothes inside.

When Percy comes home from work, Annabeth is sitting on the couch, watching one of the many TV shows she loves.

Annabeth looks up as the door opens and pauses the TV to jump up and give Percy a long kiss. "How was work?" she asks, and he tells her, with a lot of enthusiasm, about his day.

They eat dinner, watch a little more TV together and cuddle. Annabeth is falling asleep on the couch when Percy gets up to go to the bathroom. He comes back, his face white, holding a little white stick in his hand.

"Annabeth…" something in Percy's voice makes Annabeth look directly at him.

"Yes?"

Wordlessly, Percy sits down next to her and hands her the pregnancy test she had forgotten about earlier. Annabeth sees two little red lines. She is pregnant.

Annabeth refuses to let Percy treat her any differently. "I'm pregnant, not dying," she tells him. She feels fine— no morning sickness, and continues to work as an architect from home. But inside, she feels excited— there is a whole little person growing inside her.

Percy immediately goes and calls Sally. Annabeth talks to Sally on the phone, who asks how she is feeling. Annabeth starts crying, and after hours of conversation on the phone, Annabeth and Percy hang up the phone and go to bed.

After a month or so, she decides to take a break from work. Every morning, Percy holds her hair back from her face as she pukes into the toilet. She only reassures him twenty times that this is normal, and also manages to persuade him to go to work.

Annabeth goes to the doctor to have check-ups to see if everything is going normally in her third month. Percy sits next to her, holds her hand and listens so intently to everything the doctor says that Annabeth has to laugh.

In Annabeth's fourth month, Annabeth and Percy decide to move into a larger apartment so they can give their child its own room. There is plenty of extra space 'for another one', Percy tells Annabeth with a wink.

In Annabeth's fifth month, they move into their apartment, and begin planning their lives out according to the newest unborn member of their family. Rachel Elizabeth Dare helps her two best friends by painting the baby's room with an aqua theme, the walls looking like clear blue waters.

Annabeth goes baby-clothes shopping, and at Percy's request, buys mostly blue clothes. They have decided not to find out if it will be a girl or a boy, but according to Percy, 'blue clothes can never hurt'.

In the last two months before Annabeth is scheduled to give birth, Percy is so kind and caring towards her. He makes her breakfast in bed, does some of the housework and even tries to iron their clothes. He is horrible at ironing, but Annabeth smiles, tells him she loves him and tells him to wash the dishes instead.

Annabeth is standing in the kitchen early in the morning, getting herself a glass of water to drink in the morning. Her stomach had been hurting, but they were only mild cramps. Suddenly she gasps and calls for Percy, who comes running in his pyjamas and messy hair, a worried look on his face. "My water broke," she tells him.

Percy wants to rush to the hospital immediately, but Annabeth convinces him to let her get in bed and sleep for a couple more hours.

After 8 in the morning, Percy takes Annabeth to the hospital and calls all of his and Annabeth's friends. At 1:23 p.m, Annabeth gives birth to a healthy baby boy.

Percy stands there in shock, watching as the nurse wraps the tiny little baby—his baby— in a towel and hands him to his father. Percy takes the little boy, his hands trembling and goes over to Annabeth, who is utterly exhausted, but the way her eyes light up when he holds the bundle in front of her, he will never forget.

"Annabeth," he says, his voicing catching a little, "he's absolutely perfect."

Tears form in Annabeth's eyes as she strokes his little arm, his tiny hand clenched into a fist. "Yes he is," she whispered.

"His name is Benjamin," she told him and Percy could not have agreed more.


	3. C is for Comfort

**C is for Comfort**

 _This is set a little bit after the war with Gaia; with one little difference…_

Annabeth sat at the edge of the building, her legs swinging lightly. Normally, this would not have been a problem. Except that the building was thirty-four stories high and in the middle of New York. Annabeth knew that a drop from here would mean certain death. Not that she wanted to die, of course.

Annabeth was running away from her problems— again. She hated herself for it. She didn't want to seem like a coward, but sometimes she just couldn't take it.

To be completely honest, she had come here for two reasons. The first was that she needed a place to think. She needed a place to be alone with all the thoughts she had.

The second reason was that she was scared she would do something stupid, like run away to somewhere people could not find her. Or get drunk and do other stupid things.

These were the reasons that Annabeth Chase sat on the concrete ledge of the building, watching as the streets below her were filled with colourful cars zooming by. People looked like ants from up here, scurrying from one place to another. The sky above her was not clear, and the clouds were not completely dark and stormy, but it would have made anyone else uneasy. The color reminded Annabeth of her mother's eyes, and of her own.

"Annabeth." The sound of her name startled her and she jumped a little, almost falling off the ledge, but two strong hands steadied her shoulders.

She twisted around and saw Chiron standing there without the disguise of his wheelchair. He had managed to find her. She was impressed. He looked grave, which made him look even older than usual. His hair was turning white and wrinkles were etched into his face.

Annabeth read his body language. Chiron was one of the only people who were actually comfortable with talking to her nowadays, but he looked tense.

"Annabeth, child, what are you doing here?" he asked her.

Annabeth closed her eyes. "Thinking," she replied.

Chiron looked at her and she could feel his pity for her. She hated it, and knew he tried to hide it, but no thoughts were safe from a child of Athena. "It is not safe, Annabeth."

Annabeth laughed quietly, hollowly. "The quests I go on to please the gods, to do things for the gods because they're too lazy to do by themselves, that's what is not safe. This? This is nothing. Anyone is safer here than fixing some—she sneered—stupid problems for others."

Chiron glanced warningly at the sky as the clouds grew darker and larger. "Annabeth? You're not all right." It wasn't a question, it was a fact.

Annabeth opened her mouth to answer when she caught sight of the Hudson and East River in the distance. They led out into the bay, where the waves splashed. If Annabeth concentrated hard enough, she could imagine the soft sound of waves lapping against the shore. Something inside of Annabeth cracked— and the walls she had built to get away from everyone else shattered.

"No," she whispered. Chiron kneeled next to her and stroked her hair as tears pooled in those stormy grey eyes and ran down her cheeks. Finally she spoke the words, the name that she had been trying to push out of her mind for so long. "I miss Percy."


	4. D is for Drowning

**D is for Drowning:**

 _ **Summary**_ _: Piper has been having some emotional problems after the war against Gaea ended. At the lake, she decides to look for a way out._

 _(Warning: kinda dark and depressing + a teeny tiny bit of swearing)_

Piper sat on the pier, staring out into the lake. The water rippled at her feet, below her, and all around her. She shut her eyes and tried to clear her mind.

The camp behind her was being rebuilt. Most of the cabins had some damage, and the Aphrodite cabin definitely needed all the help it could get. Still, she sat here, looking for some sort of release from all her troubles.

The water lapped against the pier, causing a soothing rhythm to reach her ears. Piper closed her eyes tight and tried to block out her thoughts.

An image flashed through her mind. Leo. Disappearing in a flash of fiery light. Piper remembered being thrown to the ground in the explosion. She remembered opening her eyes. She had been lying on the floor, feeling the dry dirt on her arms and face, and a burning feeling spread through her hands that had taken the worst of the fall.

But she ignored the pain and turned her head and seen that Leo was gone. Her Leo. Gone. He had been brave. Piper had always tried to step up to new challenges, but what Leo had done had been a terrible sacrifice.

Piper pressed her eyes together and choked, unable to breath from the pressure on her chest. She let a small choking sound escape from her throat and took a shaky breath.

Piper opened her eyes and shut them again. Another image flashed through her brain. Jason. Lying on a bed, weak and pale as she tried to tend his stab wound. Piper had never felt so helpless. She had known that whatever she tried, she could not save him.

Piper had never been able to help anyone when they needed help. She was worthless. Reyna was powerful. Annabeth was so smart. Frank was strong. Hazel was amazing. Percy was so powerful. And she? She had nothing. She was no help to anyone—she was a waste of space here.

Piper stood up. The water under her lapped peacefully all around her. She gazed into the water, realising that it was deeper than she had thought. At this spot, she could not see the bottom.

Piper felt tears run down her face. She did not bother to wipe them away. Instead, she turned around to look at her home one last time. Camp Half-blood, covered in ruins, but even the new scars of the recent battle could not hide the beauty of the camp. There were so many memories of these places, but Piper pushed them away with all her strength.

No one was paying any attention to the girl standing on the pier on the lake. No one saw the girl walk straight off the pier and into the water with a small splash.

Piper fell into the cool lake and opened her eyes underwater. The murky water around her stung her eyes, but she kept them open. She forced the remaining air out of her nose and fell the water temperature sink as she drifted further down towards the bottom of the lake.

Piper felt her ears ache from the pressure and her lungs were starting to burn. Piper almost opened her mouth to let the water enter her lungs when she remembered one of the many memories that she had been trying to push away.

 _Piper sat at the brick wall, motionless as the group of girls came towards her._

 _"Piper, you're so weak," one of the girls sneered._

 _"Yeah, you little baby. You're worthless," another told her._

 _"And your dad is from what tribe again?" a girl asked._

 _"Cherokee," Piper stared unflinchingly at them._

 _"That's a mental ward, right?" another girl asked and they all laughed._

 _Piper felt a sudden surge of anger. "Get away from me."_

 _The girls had raised their eyebrows._

 _"Get away from me!" Piper screamed with all her might. One girl had come forward to kick her, but Piper stood up and shoved her away._

 _"Don't try to touch me again!" she screamed, pushed through the group of girls, shoving another who tried to stop her. "Don't. Fucking. Touch. Me."_

 _Piper turned around and smiled at the group of shocked girls. Girls who were stronger, taller than her. "Oh, right, I forgot." She showed them the middle finger and walked away._

Piper's lungs were screaming for air. She felt angry, so angry. Why should she die, just because others thought she was worthless? Why should she die, just because she didn't have special talents others had? That's right, she shouldn't. Because she was Piper fucking Mclean and so much more. A friend. A girlfriend. A person. And no one should kill themselves when they meant things to others. No one should kill themselves because they were all worth so, so much.

The murky water above her head was dimly lit by rays of sunlight. Piper desperately began to kick in the water, towards the surface as her head began clouding from the lack of oxygen. It was so far away. But Piper kicked more viciously and did not give up.

The water turned clearer and Piper burst to the surface with a gasp, coughing and panting. She used the last morsel of her energy to swim to shore and lay, concealed behind a clump of pine trees on the wet sand.

The sand was rough, and when Piper touched her face, she realised she was crying. Tears streamed down her face, but they were tears of relief. She allowed herself to smile and began sobbing and laughing when the realisation of how precious life was finally hit her.

 _"When I was drowning; that's when I could finally breathe." — Clean by Taylor Swift_


End file.
